After passing the 7 million passengers transported in 2017 and had a good first half of 2018, Thalys is actively preparing its future. Agnès Ogierthe chief executive of the European rail company, lifted the veil on 19 June in the Paris offices of Thalys, on several projects scheduled for 2018-2022.
A new Thalys kiosk was first created in Brussels-Midi station. A revamped Thalys.com website and mobile application will then be launched at the end of the year. back to school 2018Digitalisation remains a priority in order to meet new customer needs. " New functions will make it even easier for our customers to buy, exchange or refund products..." she adds. On this date, the e-kiosk press offered in the Premium category will be enhanced with new reading offers including novels, comics and tourist guides. Finally, Thalys hopes to be distributed again in Germany by the Deutsche Bahn on its various channels. Negotiations between the two railway companies have begun and could be concluded before the end of the year.
New network extensions
If the line Lille-Amsterdam will be stopped the 10 December Thalys is announcing the creation of a new train service in April 2019 services from the Marne-La-Vallée Chessy and Marne-La-Vallée Chessy TGV stations Roissy-CDG to Brussels then Antwerp, Rotterdam, the Dutch airport of Schiphol and Amsterdam. The two daily round trips will take 1h30 to the Belgian capital and 3h40 to its Dutch counterpart. " We are aiming for 300,000 passengers a year from 2021, of which business travellers connected on the airports served" Agnès Ogier points out that 5 economic hubs will be connected. Contacts with the airline group Air France-KLM are currently underway. A second leisure line will be tested between Brussels and Bordeaux (in 4h07) every Saturday from the end of June to the end of August 2019.
Redesigned trains from the end of 2019
Following the technical maintenance operation launched in 2016, Thalys will be launching a vast project to interior renovation of its 26 trains from autumn 2019 to the end of the year. 2022. This project, codenamed "RubY represents an investment of €55m per year over the period for the company. A revamped train will be introduced on the network every 3 to 4 months. Retaining the red colour so dear to Thalys, these trains will feature new seats in both classes, a more versatile bar area (where seats can be sold in the event of a large number of passengers), more modern and more comfortable seats, and a more modern design. luggage areas capacity by 7%. These 28 additional seats in Comfort 2 will be obtained thanks to the deletion of the exhibition in Comfort 1, which was underused.
" The aim of this interior renewal is to increase the comfort and pleasure our passengers enjoy during their journey. This has guided our reflections on the design and warmth of the cars, the quality of the materials used and our attention to detail." stresses Agnès Ogier. From USB sockets in Comfort 1 and screens to inform passengers in 4 languages will be installed in the trains. The renovation is being carried out by Matali Crasset's design consultancy and Axel Enthoven's Belgian firm Yellow Window, to whom Thalys already owes its current makeover. " Our trains will then be ready for service for another 15 or 20 years." she concluded.
